Want to learn more? Follow the hashtags #authormentormatch, #ammfam, and #ammparty on Twitter. And watch the video below for more information straight from AMM’s co-creator, Alexa Donne!

Submissions open March 16
and close March 21.

While you’re revising and waiting, use #AMMConnect to hype your work, sell yourself to mentors as an awesome mentee, and connect with other hopefuls across the interwebs. All you have to do is make a blog post on your own site—any will do, Tumblr, WordPress, Bloggr, Squarespace—and add your name, category/genre, and link to the table below! Feel free to scroll through and find more awesome writers, maybe even swap pages.

#AMMConnect How-To

ONE. Make your #AMMConnect bio on your blog. Tell us about yourself, what you write, the project you plan to submit, and what makes you an amazing prospective mentee. Feel free to litter your post with gifs and aesthetics and images. We love all of the above!

THREE. Head over to Twitter (if you have one) and share your post. Use the hashtag #AMMConnect and pin it to the top of your Twitter profile so mentors can more easily find it!

FOUR. Connect! Scour the bios and find fellow hopefuls who you might want to CP and drool over incredible concepts!

And if you’re on Twitter, connect with us on #AMMParty! Every day until April 30, we answer a prompt. Interact on the hashtag to learn more about your fellow hopefuls, possible mentors, and the future AMM mentees!

Why submit to AMM?

I am a mentee from Round Two in Spring 2017 and I cannot hype this program enough. You can catch what I and other mentees have to say about our experiences below and on our critique giveaway post (sign up before entries close March 1st!).

“Author Mentor Match has completely changed my life for the better. In less than a year, it has improved my writing beyond words, taught me how to meet personal deadlines, and helped me revise quickly and efficiently… But perhaps the best part of all, it helped me create an amazing, lasting relationship with my mentor.Alex HigginsAgent: Kiki Nguyen, Donald Maas LiteraryWinter 2016 Mentee, Mentor: Kayla Olson

“Author Mentor Match… gave me a mentor that supports me through it all. My mentor is always there to rant to, celebrate with, and guide me through everything. I couldn’t be happier with my experience!”Maggie SoaresAgent: Erica Bauman, Aevitas Creative

Winter 2016 Mentee, Mentor: Rebecca Barrow

“My mentor was absolutely amazing in helping me transform and polish my manuscript. But aside from craft, I’ve gained so many new friends from this experience, which is priceless to me. The mentors and mentees I’ve met have truly become my #AMMFamily and I’m so fortunate to be a part [of it].”

Terry J. BentonSpring 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Bree Barton

“I can’t believe how lucky I am to be a part of the AMM community. Mine and all the mentors, my fellow mentees—we all work together to help each other reach our goals. And to have that for the length of a career? That’s incredible.”

Alexandria SturtzSpring 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Kevin van Whye

“I am so thankful for my AMM mentor’s long-term investment in my career! She’s always there to cheer or console me during the ups and downs.”

Alyssa ColmanSpring 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Alexa Donne

“I earned an amazing, talented, dedicated mentor, who knew exactly what to do with my MS to make it the best it can be. And guess what?? She’s in it for the long haul! … And one of the best parts: the community… We have become a close loving group of friends who belong to the AMM family… I am so grateful to AMM and Alexa for this once in a lifetime opportunity for high quality mentorship.”Erika Cruz
Winter 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Maura Milan

“Gail is an awesome mentor… I’ve learned so much about the industry and have met such a great group of friends as we go through this together. My writing and confidence have grown so much. You’ve just got to join the family!”Michelle Fohlin
Winter 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Gail Villanueva

“Author Mentor Match taught me so many valuable things, but the number one thing I gained was confidence. Being selected really showed me that there was a spark, something special about my writing. During the times when I felt like my words were falling flat, the knowledge that my mentors chose me helped push me through those doubts. When I finish my edits, I am so excited to query. I feel confident in myself, and in my work.”Tara Tsai
Winter 2017 Mentee, Mentors: Austin Siegemund-Broka & Emily Wibberly

#AMMConnect Blog Links!

Enter your Name, Genre, and Link into the Google Sheet below. And then feel free to hop around and meet your fellow mentee hopefuls!

Watch the video below for more information straight from AMM’s co-creator, Alexa Donne.

Submissions open October 19
and close October 24.

While you’re revising and waiting, use #AMMConnect to hype your work, sell yourself to mentors as an awesome mentee, and connect with other hopefuls across the interwebs. All you have to do is make a blog post on your own site—any will do, Tumblr, WordPress, Bloggr, Squarespace—and add your name, category/genre, and link to the table below! Feel free to scroll through and find more awesome writers, maybe even swap pages.

#AMMConnect How-To

ONE. Make your #AMMConnect bio on your blog. Tell us about yourself, what you write, and the project you plan to submit. Feel free to litter your post with gifs and aesthetics and images. We love all of the above!

TWO. Enter your Name, Genre, and Link into the Google Sheet here.

THREE. Head over to Twitter (if you have one) and share your post. Use the hashtag #AMMConnect and pin it to the top of your Twitter profile so mentors can more easily find it!

FOUR. Connect! Scour the bios and find fellow hopefuls who you might want to CP and drool over incredible concepts!

And if you’re on Twitter, connect with us on #AMMParty! Every day until October 19, we answer a prompt. Interact on the hashtag to learn more about your fellow hopefuls and the future AMM mentees!

Why submit to AMM?

I am a mentee from Round Two in Spring 2017 and I cannot hype this program enough. You can catch what I and other mentees have to say about our experiences below and on our critique giveaway post here (entries close Sep. 22!).

“Author Mentor Match has completely changed my life for the better. In less than a year, it has improved my writing beyond words, taught me how to meet personal deadlines, and helped me revise quickly and efficiently… But perhaps the best part of all, it helped me create an amazing, lasting relationship with my mentor.Alex HigginsWinter 2016 Mentee, Mentor: Kayla Olson

“My mentor was absolutely amazing in helping me transform and polish my manuscript. But aside from craft, I’ve gained so many new friends from this experience, which is priceless to me. The mentors and mentees I’ve met have truly become my #AMMFamily and I’m so fortunate to be a part [of it].”Terry J. BentonSpring 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Bree Barton

“I can’t believe how lucky I am to be a part of the AMM community. Mine and all the mentors, my fellow mentees—we all work together to help each other reach our goals. And to have that for the length of a career? That’s incredible.”Alexandria SturtzSpring 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Kevin van Whye

“Author Mentor Match… gave me a mentor that supports me through it all. My mentor is always there to rant to, celebrate with, and guide me through everything. I couldn’t be happier with my experience!”Maggie Soares

Winter 2016 Mentee, Mentor: Rebecca Barrow

“I am so thankful for my AMM mentor’s long-term investment in my career! She’s always there to cheer or console me during the ups and downs.”

Alyssa ColmanSpring 2017 Mentee, Mentor: Alexa Donne

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/ammconnect-hopeful-bios/feed/0IMG_3026asturtzLessons in Craft: Head Hoppinghttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/05/03/lessons-in-craft-head-hopping/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/05/03/lessons-in-craft-head-hopping/#commentsTue, 02 May 2017 17:29:10 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=2421Often a mistake made by newer writers, head hopping is one of the most frustrating things to encounter as a reader. Its definition is simple–when the narrator switches between one character’s point of view to another without preamble or a signal to the reader about the change.

What does it look like?

Terribly written example incoming:
“Jason’s fingers brushed Tuck’s hand and a thrill of nerves shot down from his belly button. He couldn’t believe the moment was finally here. Tuck stroked his fingers across Jason’s knuckles and recited his vows over and over in his head. He couldn’t forget them. Not today. Not when Tuck was about to marry him.”

Here we’ve switched between Jason and Tuck’s POV without a signal to the reader besides starting one sentence with a different name. We’re in Jason’s head when he “couldn’t believe the moment was finally here,” only to hop into Tuck’s head as he recites “his vows over and over.” And Jason can’t possibly know because he doesn’t live in Tuck’s head.

But what about 3rd person, omniscient!

Omniscient narration still has a narrative voice which is separate from the character’s in the story. While the narrator may dip into people’s heads, she remains at a distance in her telling of the story. That means, she doesn’t speak as Jason or Tuck, but as herself observing and telling the thoughts or feelings of Jason and Tuck.

Why’s head hopping bad?

It confuses the fuck out of people\me.

Especially in the third person, head hopping makes me question who “he” is referring to when the narrator says “he walked into the store” because there are two men in this scene and which one do you mean? As a reader, I need one POV to fall into and assume we are referencing, otherwise I spend three minutes re-reading one paragraph trying to suss it out.

Don’t do it, y’all. Just don’t.

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/05/03/lessons-in-craft-head-hopping/feed/2IMG_1090asturtzLessons in Craft: Distancing the Readerhttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/03/28/lessons-in-craft-distancing-the-reader/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/03/28/lessons-in-craft-distancing-the-reader/#commentsTue, 28 Mar 2017 01:04:52 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=1154Whenever I critique a fellow writer’s work, especially a newer writer, unintentionally distancing the reader is one of my biggest nitpicks. I make this comment continuously and I think it’s super important in most fiction—STOP DISTANCING THE READER.

There are multiple ways to do this, but the biggest culprits are filter verbs. The next biggest culprit is a lack of connection to the main character. And the third can be POV. Let’s knock these down one-by-one.

FILTER VERBS

These verbs include, but are not limited to, “think, feel, hear, see, watch, notice, observe, wonder, smell, taste, realize” and more. I know I’m missing some, so if you have any to add, please comment below.

These verbs create a barrier between the reader and the character, and they’re rooted in telling rather than showing. They’re also really weak verbs that should be traded for more pointed and efficient ones. Here’s an example:

“Susan heard a thump from the other room and saw the light flutter. She realized someone else was in the house.”

These aren’t a bad couple of sentences and they get the point across, but they aren’t good. I don’t feel scared or tense. I’m not yelling at my screen, “Don’t you dare go in there Susan!” So, let’s cut out the filter verbs (heard and saw and realized) and instead describe the sound, describe the light, and just have the narration reflect her realization.

“A thump rattled in the other room and the light fluttered. Someone else was in the house.”

Okay, better. Rather than filtering everything through Susan, we now have an atmosphere that’s much more effective.

CONNECTION TO THE MC

The down-and-dirty definition: relating the events and actions happening around the MC to the MC.

This is basically where emotions and backstory and voice come into play without dumping information on the reader or using paragraphs of exposition. And it’s something I’ve struggled with myself. There’s a balance to interior thought. You can have too much, or too little, and the sweetspot is somewhere in-between.

In my first drafts of my current MS, I focused mostly on describing actions rather than relating narration to the character (in 3rd person) or through the character (1st person). I found my character’s voice upon my first re-write, but I was terrified of losing it as I entered Act II and its addition of new characters. I don’t pretend to know what voice is, how it can grab a reader, or how to achieve it, but below is what I try to do.

The thing that works for me, and maybe it’ll help you, is relating current events happening in real-time in the MS to past emotional events in my MC’s life. For example, Susan (from the example above) has likely felt scared or apprehensive at some point in her life. Let’s say this is LIGHTS OUT, a movie based on this short film that literally scared the absolute shit out of me and I couldn’t sleep with the lights off for at least a week.

Anyway… In the feature-length movie, LIGHTS OUT, the antagonist is a girl who only exists in the dark and terrorizes a family. It also subverts a bunch of horror tropes and if you haven’t watched it, go do that (just do it in the middle of a sunny day with all your curtains open and also your lights on). Back to the story—**SPOILER ALERT**—the FMC remembers a time when this antagonist visited before, when she was a child. Let’s say Susan is that character.

Our example as written above:“A thump rattled in the other room and the light fluttered. Someone else was in the house.”

Now, let’s add some connection to the MC. Sometimes (like a few times in a whole book) I describe a whole memory, but most often I try to keep the exposition, aka the backstory, to a minimal 1-3 sentences.

“A thump rattled in the other room and the light fluttered. It’s the same room as last time, as years ago when Susan was too young to comprehend the dangers of the dark. Someone else was in the house.”

BOOM. Now we have a whole host of feelings and information and we only added one sentence! 1. This has happened before. 2. We’ve invoked the childhood fear of the dark. 3. Foreshadowing—something that’s happened before or anything that’s mentioned like this is a promise to the reader about later. Da-dum. Da-dum…

If you do want to describe a whole memory, I have three questions to decipher whether it’s actually necessary and not just an info-dump full of exposition.

Question # 1: Is it relevant?This is the first and foremost question you should always ask when including any kind of backstory or exposition or description or literally just about anything in your book. If it doesn’t have any bearing or insight on the scene at hand, if it doesn’t foreshadow something later, if it doesn’t effectively characterize a character, then cut it out.

It’s super easy to think every tidbit of information you write in your first draft, or second draft, or third fourth fifth draft, is important and relevant, but it’s probably not. I often discover things about my characters in the first draft, as well as things about my world, about my story. And just as often, those things don’t make it into the final draft.

So, when writing a memory (or when offering any type of exposition or description or characterization, etc), remember that it must be relevant to the scene and to understanding what’s happening on the page.

Question #2: Is it emotional?There must be an emotional connection that directly relates to the MC in that moment. Perhaps she’s about to face off against her biggest childhood fear and she remembers when her mom checked for monsters under her bed. Emotional and symbolic resonance: Mom isn’t here to defeat the monsters anymore, but the MC has the strength to do so because of her mom’s love and support.

Question #3: Does it muck up the pacing?Memory is, by definition, slow. It’s a moment suspended in time. That’s not to say it isn’t beneficial to slow the pacing down when the tension is rising, to let the reader soak in it and also draw in the emotional resonance of the scene and how it relates to the MC. But if the tension is already heightened to fever pitch, then perhaps stopping to remember that one time at band camp isn’t the best choice.

I’m a big fan of “breathing” at the top of chapters with a memory. I don’t employ this technique too often because it can become tedious and confuse the reader when you time-jump out of the present action. That said, describing a memory at a break is a good structural trick that can relate that memory to the scene, while also allowing the reader a moment to breathe with the MC.

POV

Sometimes POV is a preference, or an industry trend, or an exploration of voice, or simply the thing that felt right when writing the story. POV should be a conscious choice rather than a default setting. There are pros and cons to each, but I think one of the most detrimental disadvantages is distancing the reader.

3rd Person Omniscient
Definition: the narrator speaks with the voice of the author, assuming an omniscient (all-knowing) perspective of the story; he can know any character’s private thoughts, narrate secret scenes or hidden events, etc. Example of Omni. POV: THE LORD OF THE RINGS.

A lot of fantasy and sci-fi writers start out in this POV, only to run into problems like head-hopping (a post on that to come), flat characterization, and distancing the reader. By definition, 3rd Person Omni POV puts up a gauzy curtain between the reader and the characters and can keep the reader from connecting to the character(s).

3rd Person LimitedDefinition: all characters are described using pronouns, but the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of only one character and follows them closely. Example: the majority of books since forever, but I digress–ENDER’S GAME, TRUTHWITCH (though this book alternates narrators), etc.

While there are disadvantages, focusing on one character allows for the reader to connect and sympathize with that character, which in turn draws the reader in rather than distancing. If you go “deep,” then the connection only grows. Kim Weiland does a much better job laying it all out than I ever could.

1st Person
Definition: on character narrates the story at a time, using “I, me, my” pronouns. This character may be speaking about him or herself or sharing events that he or she is experiencing. Example: a lot of YA novels are written in this POV, like THE HATE U GIVE, THESE BROKEN STARS, etc.

This is literally the easiest way to connect a reader to a character, having them live the book through the MC.

These aren’t the only things yanking your reader out of the story and distancing them from your characters, but they’re definitely a start.

Do you have any tips or tricks to keep your reader connected to the character?

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/03/28/lessons-in-craft-distancing-the-reader/feed/4fullsizeoutput_2ec9asturtzMy Bujo and My Writing IIhttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/02/22/my-bujo-and-my-writing-2/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/02/22/my-bujo-and-my-writing-2/#commentsWed, 22 Feb 2017 12:58:52 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=2028Last year, I wrote a post about how I use my regular bullet journal to help track my word count, writing and revision goals, and keep myself motivated and inspired. Many people commented on the post, talking about how it’s hard to find bullet journal ideas for fiction writers and I couldn’t agree more.

So I bought a journal just for writing and I’ve been experimenting with layouts and ways to use it in my writing journey. Below, I’ve listed the pages in order of my writing process, from inspiration to plotting, writing, and then revision.

Inspiration

I migrated this page from my day-to-day bujo into my writing journal and am still fleshing it out, but so far—I love it.

Again, another layout still unfinished. Pixar makes some incredibly moving stories and I thought using their storytelling tips would be beneficial.

I debated moving this to plotting, but I think shiny new ideas are inspiring, and often my initial brainstorm ends up being a mess of ideas that don’t end up mattering to the story, world or characters. Whenever I do start brainstorming a shiny new idea, I often need to flesh out the plot, ask worldbuilding questions, and imagine the characters. This usually comes out as a list, which I try to dress up with doodles and fun headers and color.

Plotting

Last week, I went a bit of a rant about story structure and how it’s so important to your story and should appear at some point in your process. I love beat sheets, they help me imagine a story as a story rather than a rambling clusterfuck of characters and plot events that barely relate to each other.

Below is a master beat sheet that outlines and explains each beat of a story in order. On the right-hand page, you’ll see the page number and word count numbers of where each beat should fall in a 80,000 word story. If you go to Jami Gold’s website and click over to her page, Worksheets for Writers, she has this exact beat sheet in an Excel spreadsheet with the equation already built in. All you have to do is change your word count goal to whatever and it will automatically work out where each beat should fall in your MS.

As usual, this is a resource and it is tailored to the needs of a large target audience. Sometimes your story will break these rules, or the beat will fall a few thousand words early or late—that’s okay! This is a flexible guideline. I’ve used this both in my journal and on my computer, but I couldn’t show you spoilers for my writing, now could I? *winks*

Below is a master outline of the Hero’s Journey. Your character arc (this outline) and plot arc (the above outline) should work in tandem, both for and against each other. The plot should play into the character arc and vice-versa. I find it super important to my process to have both of these filled out before I start writing because often I find I end up rambling into bumfuck nowhere and down a well even Lassie can’t get me out of if I don’t.

Writing

On my weekly-daily mashups (I don’t see the point in separating them and don’t have enough going on to require that I do so), I keep a word-count tracker (right-hand page, middle-left) where I record how many words I write each day. As you can see below, I finished my first draft of MoD on Thursday, December 08! This is the very reason I love my bujo—I can look back and remember incredible moments in my journey or just daily life.

You can also see that I keep track of writing and reading in my habit tracker (top-right corner), which I keep on my daily-weekly mashup spread rather than monthly. This is mostly because I’m really bad at looking back at spreads to fill them out. I forget about them and if I don’t have that reminder on the page I look at everyday—plus, I don’t have that many habits to track, honestly.

When I started my new bujo in January, 2017, I decided to keep a project tracker at the back of my journal. I put all my collections at the back of my bujos (except year-long goals and bucket lists, etc.) and then my monthlies, monthly memories, and weeklies at the front. The two categories “meet in the middle” when I eventually run out of room. I use quotes because more often, my collections only extend 20 pages in and that’s not really the middle.

ANYWHO. My project tracker is about visualizing my progress. I fill in a box for each 1,000 words written in the first draft, then for each scene revised, plus record what my focus is for each revision. I also like having a page dedicated to an MS, it gives it more importance and weight in my bujo—which is a reflection of how I view it in life.

Revision

Ah, revision. I am a lover of the first draft. It’s a discovery of story and exciting to gallivant on adventures and explore emotions for the first time with my characters and world.

Revision? I’m not a huge fan. It’s about the nitty gritty and making the story literally bend to your will and fit into its big-girl pants. Take me back to drafting please!

Below are Susan Dennard’s revision steps outlined in detail. I literally sat with these pages open as I started my first-pass revisions for MoD. There are things I’d like to change about it (like what to write on the notecard for each scene and what equals a scene), but I found this to be the most helpful process after searching for months to find something that was both detailed and relevant. Most revision blogs I found were all about line edits and scene-level revisions. Like, no—I need big picture help!

Here we have revision notes I made while drafting my MS of things I knew I need to change or flesh out or thread through the whole MS. In the second photo, I have my title ideas and critique partner comments that especially resonated with me or were simply confidence-boosting.

Series Plotting

Though I don’t plan to write further into the series unless I were to acquire an agent and sell the book as a series, I have still thought out the possible plots and character arcs for a trilogy.

Reading

I started this in January, but I’ve been writing book reports on my monthly spreads. I’m not able to read more than like two or three books each month to be honest, especially now that I’m revising. It’s a bit dangerous because it fucks with the voice I’m trying to achieve in my writing.

I was feeling lost in my TBR pile last month and feeling obligated to read books I already had before books I was super excited about. So I made a list of books on my Kindle in order of hype so I felt less lost and less obligated! I really enjoy it. The second photo is Diversity Bingo for 2017. I may be cheating by counting books for more than one square, but meh—it’s my life. If you want to participate in Diversity Bingo, finding #ownvoices books is super important and encouraged. Enjoy!

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/02/22/my-bujo-and-my-writing-2/feed/3img_0090asturtzIMG_2452.jpgimg_0076img_0079img_0081img_0084.jpgimg_2490.jpgimg_0075.jpgimg_0199-1img_0197Lessons in Craft: Structurehttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/02/15/lessons-in-craft-structure/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/02/15/lessons-in-craft-structure/#commentsWed, 15 Feb 2017 13:27:27 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=1908A series about the lessons and tribulations and humility I learn as I improve my writing craft.

In the second half of 2016, I focused on my writing and craft more than anything else and ever before. The book I wrote from earlier that year was a mess of epic proportions, and even then, I submitted that clusterfuck of a novel to #PitchWars 2016 and subsequently to an editor to help me realize what the fuck was wrong with it.

Spoiler alert: it was pacing, which honestly boils down to structure.

I’ve been around the block on writing forums, book Twitter, critique sites, and blogs and the same discussion plays out over and over again—plotter or pantser? Honestly, whatever process works for you is fantastic and if you’ve discovered the secret recipe to get words down on the page, then fuck, you’re halfway there.

But you’re still only halfway.

Whether you plot or pants or some hybrid of the two, story structure is vital and necessary to your story. Oftentimes pantsers complain, structure and outlines make me feel like I’m chained to a plot and stifles my creativity! And I once raised my voice with them. I hated the idea of structure, of beat sheets and outlines and all the other paperwork that it brings to mind. I stubbornly refused to use those resources even when I kept receiving rejection after rejection—not just from queries, but contests and potential critique partners.

Learn my from my dumb-assery.

It was during #PitchWars last summer. I decided to take the advice of hundreds of agented writers in their revision homework posts and did the unthinkable—use a dreaded beat sheet.

*GASP*

Right? It was intense staring at all the boxes. I had to find out what each plot point, each beat, meant. What’s worse—I had to face the very real and now embarrassingly obvious truth…

I was missing half the beats.

I can hear writers wailing in my head, but stories that follow beats are so formulaic! Mine breaks the rules in new and interesting ways!

…………………………… um ……………………………………….

Precious writers, if your end-goal is traditional publication, then the only—the only—person who can decide if such claims are true is the Industry. Yes, the Industry is a person, or rather a group of thousands of people moving at a pace more sluggish than a snail over a mountain. And they, precious writers, are the gatekeepers, beholden to the market, who pay them and (hopefully someday) you.

And that’s my goal—traditional publication and the far-off possibility of writing full-time. Commercially sold books follow story structures inherent in whatever genre you write, and it might feel formulaic, but I can guarantee almost every best-selling novel last year aligned to a beat sheet.

So I set to work, which meant a complete and total overhaul of my MS. For this project, that looked like starting with structure. I filled out a new beat sheet and really thought about the promises of the book, the themes, and what had to happen to get to the ending I envisioned.

It helped immensely. I could see the path ahead more clearly rather than letting my characters take control in a scene and lead me down a rabbit hole I’d later have to dig us all out of or bury entirely. If a scene was unnecessary, as in it didn’t move the plot forward or effectively show relationship and/or character development, I realized and nixed it right away. And for once, I could actually tell as I wrote because the way forward was crystal-fucking-clear.

And you know what? I also fucked that beat sheet up. I switched out events and changed the stakes and threw out a whole subplot. And that flexibility came easily because of the beat sheet. One punch of the backspace button, swipe of an eraser, roll of the white-out tape, and BAM! Changed.

The beat sheet, the structure, did not chain me to my plot, it did not cage me and take away the glow of excitement to write.

So here I am, advocating that you use beat sheets, study story structure, read up on pacing. Many writers pants the first draft and revise the fuck out of the second, third, fifth, millionth, for the exact reason above—outlines make me feel like I’m chained to a plot and stifle my creativity!—and that’s totally okay. But that doesn’t ever mean you can trash structure entirely. Apply it in revisions. Apply it beforehand. Whichever way is best for you.

Story structure will save your sanity, your relationships, and your story. You need it. I swear.

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/02/15/lessons-in-craft-structure/feed/4img_0069asturtz2017: New Year, New Point of Viewhttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/01/06/2017-new-year-new-point-of-view/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/01/06/2017-new-year-new-point-of-view/#commentsFri, 06 Jan 2017 13:46:49 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=1852January 1, 2017, rolled into existence just five days ago and as new beginnings do, I’ve taken the time to reflect on the crapfest that was 2016 for the world. Everyone and their toddler (by toddler I mean our President Elect) has had a tale to tell over the last year and I don’t have much to add to the narrative, so I plan to let my Twitter timeline and Facebook feed speak for themselves. They are a reflection of my thoughts, afterall.

Instead, I want to focus on my own personal reflection. Last year, in April, I started keeping a bullet journal and it has been pivotal in this process. Not only do I have eight months worth of record to show me just what I’ve accomplished in 2016, but I also have that same record to show just where I’m lacking in improvement.

2016 in Review

Personally, 2016 was pretty incredible. The year before, I committed to writing and creating a habit of getting words on the page, but I wasn’t passionate about it. I wasn’t digging into the nitty gritty, but rather too enamored with the dream to work toward making it a reality.

Then in November, 2015, the idea for my current MS hit me like a freight train and I’ve been riding that thing ever since. This last year has shown me a taste of the highs and lows associated with the publishing industry. I finished my MS, entered into Query Kombat, realized just how not ready I was, met new writer friends and found my writer tribe, revised like my MS was on fire and if I didn’t write fast enough it’d all disappear, entered Pitch Wars, was rejected but found even more people, learned even more things, and made amazing connections with fellow Pitch Warriors and Mentors. After all that, I hired an editor–Jami Nord of Chimaera Editing is amazing and I encourage anyone and everyone to work with her–and dove right back into my novel with a plan to make it even better.

I kicked this years ass. Sometimes it kicked my ass, too.

2016 was full of loss and rejection and hard truths and bruised ego. What’s more–I went through all of these things and came out the other side fortified and emboldened and on fire.

2017: New Point of View

Looking forward to 2017, I want to continue the trend of kicking ass, but I want to do it with more focus, more intention, and more longevity.

I’ve started really looking at what I want to achieve beyond getting published.

That’s one step in the journey of, hopefully, a lifelong career. There are multitudes of things I can do as a writer outside of writing and publishing books–like teaching, mentoring, other realms of media (comics, screenplays, podcasts, vlogging, etc.).

Looking at my future as if I’m already a writer has completely changed my way of thinking. Rather than my point of view revolving around the next place I’ll live, the next adventure I’ll take, the next job I’ll try for, instead it’s revolving around how I will achieve my goals as a writer, as a future author.

With that mindset, I’ve written out some goals for 2017. I tried to keep them within the realm of my control.

I want to take actionable steps toward making a career as a writer.

I want to learn more about writing craft and how to tell extraordinary stories.

I want to commit to writing diversely and repping other people and cultures well.

I want to read more.

I want to encourage and foster critique partner relationships.

I want to make meaningful connections within the writing and publishing community.

I want to invest in my writing career.

I want to learn and continue challenging myself, my mindsets, my beliefs, with each passing day.

In my bullet journal, I listed actionable steps to take in order to meet these goals and broke down the year into quarters. I can’t wait to see what happens as this year unfolds. Let’s kick some ass!

Happy new year!

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2017/01/06/2017-new-year-new-point-of-view/feed/5fullsizeoutput_2e76asturtzfullsizeoutput_3a2c#Scrivathon16: the 24hr word sprinthttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/scrivathon16-the-24hr-word-sprint/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/scrivathon16-the-24hr-word-sprint/#respondSun, 25 Sep 2016 23:46:39 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/scrivathon16-the-24hr-word-sprint/A.Y. Chao: I’m revising, of course. But somehow the more I revise and think the more my brain seems to stretch. So on top of taking a developmental editing class with the incredible Rhay Christou and another editing class—Before You Hit Send— with Angela James, working my revisions, and learning all…]]>

I’m revising, of course. But somehow the more I revise and think the more my brain seems to stretch. So on top of taking a developmental editing class with the incredible Rhay Christou and another editing class—Before You Hit Send— with Angela James, working my revisions, and learning all about literary agency PR as an intern for Inklings Literary Agency, I’ve been thinking about word sprints.

Word sprints are timed writing spurts with the goal of writing as much as you can, and resisting the urge to edit, usually in tandem with other writers. I did a few wordsprints on Twitter when I needed to do some background digging into my main character. The sprinting was great fun, and a wonderful way to connect with other writers while still being productive.

My brain pulled and twisted and folded the idea of word sprints… and I thought—why not make…

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/scrivathon16-the-24hr-word-sprint/feed/0asturtzThe Importance of Time Awayhttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/08/18/the-importance-of-time-away/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/08/18/the-importance-of-time-away/#commentsThu, 18 Aug 2016 14:19:14 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=1705For 12 days, I frolicked, lazed, bummed, drove, rolled, ate, and hiked my way through Malaysia. I literally hit send on my #PitchWars submission and hopped on a plane the next day. I didn’t plan it that way, but I’m so damn happy it worked out like that.

I spent July sleeping, breathing, eating, living my manuscript. I went to work for 8 hours every day, then revised for at least 3 hours after that. I cut thousands of words, characters, plots, subplots, etc. You name it, it was under my knife with the threat of extinction. I honestly cannot believe I did all that in one month.

Just. Wow.

And then I finished and I submitted and I said, “Deuces.”

And I really needed that.

I was fried. Totally undone and manic and suffering under the guise of excitement. I needed to get out of my head-space and dive into something that did not require me to use so many brain cells. I needed to disconnect because my stress was leaking into other parts of my life and souring friendships and familial relationships. Even while I was on vacation, I just couldn’t devote time to other people and their emotional needs because my own spring of well-being had dried up to the point that giving any away would have meant running totally empty.

And that’s okay. We tend to define ourselves by others, whether people need us or run to us or think of us or approve of us, and that’s human nature. But it’s okay to step back and care for yourself first. It’s not selfish to clean up and refill your emotional well. My time away was refreshing and so incredibly necessary.

This wasn’t what I set out to say at the beginning of this post. I meant to relate this to writing. Here goes:

Whenever you finish a round of edits, or a draft, or writing becomes a slog through the mud, then step back from your manuscript.

Sometimes that means taking a walk or a weekend and focusing on yourself, your relationships, your life outside writing. For me, that’s an answer to writer’s block. Clear your head, let ideas flow through you, and come back with determination and motivation.

But I think, in my very limited opinion, longer bouts of time away are even more necessary—especially between drafts and rounds of editing. A month, even two, will provide worlds of perspective. If you have the time to do it, file that manuscript away and let it be. Let the words fade from your memory and only the plot remain.

Spend that time on another book, whether that means writing a new WIP or reading something you haven’t had time to pick up. Study your craft. Travel and gain life experience outside of fictional stories. Live the adventures you write or simply continue writing adventures.

When you come back to that manuscript, things will blare out at you—FIX ME! And you won’t be able to ignore it. Things you didn’t realize before, things you had an inkling weren’t quite right, they will become so obvious you’ll think you were dumb only a month ago.

Time away gives us perspective on so many things, and writing is no different.

]]>https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/08/18/the-importance-of-time-away/feed/113920351_10208185839662077_3623291867506288968_oasturtzMy Bujo and my Writinghttps://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/07/22/my-bujo-and-my-writing/
https://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/2016/07/22/my-bujo-and-my-writing/#commentsFri, 22 Jul 2016 13:03:34 +0000http://alexandriasturtz.wordpress.com/?p=1582Whether you have a bullet journal (bujo) or not, these are some simple ways I like to track my writing habits and keep myself on-task. For the self-rewarding, there’s no better feeling than checking something off your to-do list. Even if you added it for the sole purpose of checking it off immediately.

My bujo has finally reached the point where I have most everything streamlined. I like my setup, it works well, and I don’t feel overwhelmed by all the things I must track or do or make. I’m not insanely busy nor do I twiddle my thumbs for hours, so my bujo is pretty sparse when it comes to trackers and weeklies or dailies. In fact, I said to hell with separating weeklies and dailies a couple months ago.

I love my layout and the many different ways I use my bujo to help my writing process or keep track of queries or submissions.

1. Word count goal and tracker

On my daily-weekly mash up, I not only keep track of my habits, like writing, reading, and dining out, but I also keep a word count bar. My weekly goal is 4,000 words and after each day or session, I fill the bar up to my week’s total. I usually round to the nearest quarter ~1250 or 1500 etc.

2. Running To- Do List

In the picture above, you can see two small to-do lists in the bottom right-hand corner of my bujo. My list doesn’t often total more than 3-4 things for either general or writing, so I can keep this here on my daily-weekly mash up. If you have an insane list for either general or writing, I’d maybe move this to weekly or monthly. Sometimes, though, I have a big project with an even bigger running to-do list…

3. Revise and edit tracker

… and so I give the project it’s own page. Often, I flip ahead to after the fourth daily-weekly mash up of the month so it doesn’t interrupt the flow, or if I know it’s an upcoming project I’ll place it at the beginning of the month.

This month, July 2016, I’ve been revising in preparation for #PitchWars and didn’t have a running list of edits to complete as you see above (you can also see how much my layout has changed from May to now). This revision was about hacking my MS apart. I added a totally new plot thread, changed subplots, completely re-wrote entire portions of the book, and it just couldn’t be tracked in my bujo. That was all done in Scrivener… or that extra piece of paper in the picture…

5. PitchWars Mentors (aka spreadsheets)

When prepping for #PitchWars, mentor mini interviews were released for every category–A, NA, YA, and MG. I recorded all the names of the A/NA mentors, what they wrote, their editing style, their MSWL (manuscript wishlist) preferences, and the vibe I got from them. You gotta vibe with whoever you work with when it comes to writing or the partnership is doomed from the start.

When the MSWL posts came out, I taped over the mentors who didn’t want my genre (sorry I wish you all wanted SFF, too) to narrow down my choices. I also color coded who I really wanted to submit to down to who I probably couldn’t submit to (if they wrote romance, the chances were slim for me. Sigh).

6. Query Tracker (aka more spreadsheets)

Sending out queries sucks, but making the bujo spreadsheet wasn’t too bad. Much less rejection from your bujo! Anywho, I have four columns for date queried, name and company, which query I sent (because I revise that shit on the weekly—at least it feels that way), and date/reply. As you can see, my tracker isn’t full and it’s all rejections. Yay? Here’s to hoping #PitchWars goes well! And the latest revisions have made my MS better.

5. Work Weekend Goals

One of my girlfriends and I try to go away for a weekend every-other month to hermit in a hotel room and do work. She sells crochet, knitting, and calligraphy. I write. And we have an awesome time. When I go away on these weekends, I like to create a list of goals for my time, as you can see below.

6. Habit Tracker

As you can see in a few pictures above, especially at numbers one and three, I have a small habit tracker on my daily-weekly mash up. I use it to keep myself on-task and see where I need to make more time or cut back on something. In July, the read and crit row has been stark almost the whole month because I’m focusing so hard on revisions. I can’t even get into a book lately, it’s horrible.

7. TBR Pile

If you bujo at all, I’m sure you’ve seen this template around the interwebs. I idiotically made mine two pages like I need that much space to track my reading right now. It’s okay, though, because it just means more room for books without the actual books, which works because I live a nomadic existence.

I honestly haven’t finished a book on here (I have finished books, but I didn’t do that thing where you write it in after you finish so you can mark it off… whoops!), but I want to! Where is the time?

8. Inspiration & Encouragement

This is my favorite page in my bujo. It’s full of famous quotes and personal reminders and inspiration for me to refer back to. I love it.

There are plenty of ways to use a bullet journal, and one way isn’t right for everyone. Kind of like writing processes. Take what you like and leave the rest.

Do you use a journal or to-do list to help track your writing and goals?